2 years ago
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HARTFORD, Conn. (WTNH) – Some children’s hospitals astir the state are being overwhelmed with patients suffering from respiratory illnesses.
Respiratory Syncytial Virus (RSV) successful peculiar is connected the rise, according to the latest information from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Cases person spiked, particularly successful the Northeast and South.
For the past fewer weeks, Connecticut Children’s Hospital successful Hartford has been implicit capableness arsenic much and much young children person been admitted for RSV. The infirmary is present successful talks with the National Guard and FEMA astir mounting up a structure extracurricular to grow capacity.
“We conscionable don’t person arsenic galore captious attraction beds [for children] arsenic we person big captious attraction beds simply due to the fact that we don’t usually request them,” said Dr. Juan Salazar, doc successful main of Connecticut Children’s Medical Center.
Cases began spiking successful aboriginal September and roseate exponentially, helium said, which is thing he’s ne'er seen before.
“Our infirmary was full,” Salazar said. “Our accepted pediatric in-patient beds, we person 3 floors with 25 beds successful each location, we tin grow to 28. All of those were afloat this morning.”
At Yale New Haven Children’s Hospital, RSV cases successful the exigency section astir doubled successful the past week, going from 57 to 106. Thirty children are admitted determination for RSV each day. In contrast, they lone spot 1 to 3 children per time successful the exigency section with COVID-19.
Several D.C.-area hospitals person besides been astatine capableness for weeks, the Washington Post reports.
“The information that you person to look astatine the genitor and accidental your kid needs ICU-level attraction but we person nary furniture for them: That’s a precise hard speech to have,” Sofia Teferi, a pediatrician astatine MedStar Montgomery Medical Center, told the Post.
NBC News recovered hospitals successful California, Illinois, Massachusetts, North Carolina and Rhode Island were besides nether strain from an influx successful RSV patients.
For astir kids, RSV usually causes mild cold-like symptoms, including a runny nose, congestion, and a mild fever. Salazar said it tin beryllium overmuch worse for children that are immunocompromised oregon person a bosom defect.
“Why truthful overmuch successful September and October? We don’t know,” Salazar said. “We person theories: herd immunity, immune suppression, and everyone getting it astatine the aforesaid clip — it’s the cleanable tempest astatine our exigency departments.”
Parents should look retired for changes successful their children’s breathing, which could beryllium a motion of RSV. Other signs include:
- Fast oregon abbreviated breaths
- Grunting noises
- Chest caving successful with each breath
- Skin turning bluish oregon purple owed to deficiency of oxygen. On darker skin, look for changes to lips, tongue, gums, and astir the eyes
There is nary vaccine for RSV, but Salazar encouraged parents acrophobic astir their kid to inquire their pediatrician astir immunoglobulin therapy. For mild RSV cases, betterment typically takes a fewer days.
With the Connecticut Children’s Hospital already astatine its max capacity, Salazar besides disquieted influenza could enactment them implicit the edge.
“Don’t wait, please,” Salazar said. “Get children vaccinated for flu. It’s thing you request to do, it’s precise important for their family, and you assistance children’s hospitals little the fig of kids coming in.”
Salazar said they already person 2 children hospitalized with the flu, which helium says is precise antithetic for October. He expected flu cases would summation importantly successful the coming weeks and implicit the holidays.
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